Suspected Islamist militants attacked an Egyptian police patrol near the Israeli border today. Egyptian security officials told the Associated Press that four police vehicles came under fire near a pipeline that has been attacked numerous times since the fall of Hosni Mubarak.

Seven policemen were reportedly wounded during the attack, “including a high ranking officer.”

Meanwhile, in what appears to be a separate incident, an Egyptian army officer was killed by a sniper “seemingly affiliated to extremist groups” in el Arish in the Northern Sinai on Friday.

Israeli intelligence believes that most of the attacks originating in the Sinai have been carried out by Ansar Jerusalem, also known as Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis. According to a recent report, Western officials estimate that there are at least several hundred jihadists, some of whom are from Yemen and Somalia, now operating in the Sinai.

Following the Rafah incident, Egyptian authorities issued a security alert for the Sinai as intelligence services received information about potential attacks by extremist groups in the Sinai.

Today the Israel Defense Forces announced an order “prohibiting civilians from traveling in the area of Israel’s Highway 10 near the Israeli-Egyptian border, except with special permission, for the next year.” The directive was issued following “a thorough security assessment conducted by the IDF.”

Israel recently completed most of its border fence with Egypt. The barrier is intended to help prevent the influx illegal migrants as well as stop jihadists operating in the Sinai from carrying out attacks in Israel.